Table 1.

Concepts in the Theory of Care-Seeking Behavior

Concept	Definition	Examples
Affect	Feelings associated with care-seeking behavior.	Fear of seeking care. Feeling anxious about results of screening.
Utility	Overall worth of care seeking, expectations & values of seeking care.	Beliefs about the likelihood of care-seeking behavior yielding relevant outcomes.
Normative Influences	Personal, professional or peer opinions about care-seeking behaviors (e.g., secondary preventive behaviors).	Personal: One’s beliefs about morally correct behavior regarding care seeking. Social: Friends’ or family’s beliefs about care seeking. Interpersonal agreement to act: Promise made with health care provider, friend, or family member to engage in care seeking.
Habits	One’s usual care-seeking behavior, past experience with care seeking, or how one usually acts related to care seeking when one experiences symptoms.	Whether or not one seeks care promptly with symptoms. Whether one seeks asymptomatic screening (e.g., screening for sexually transmitted infections before starting new sexual relationship).
External conditions	Specific, objective, conditions that impact one’s ability to seek care. Can reflect either facilitators or barriers.	Affordability (e.g., having insurance that covers cost of screening), accessibility (e.g., a screening facility is near one’s home), acceptability (e.g., staff at screening facility are welcoming)